Fremont (CA) Police using a Tesla as a patrol car

[JeffKeryk]

Tesla is the 2nd biggest employer in Fremont, after Lam Research, which is right across the street (CA 880).
HUGE tax base for the city and area. Fremont really wanted Tesla to build there because of the loss of NUMMI.
Many restaurants and other businesses suffered when NUMMI shut down; it was bad.
The loss of all the union jobs even hit property values.

Our 1965 4-4-2, my old 1993 Toyota 4WD PU and 2018 Model 3 were all built there.
All are still in service.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Yeah, even though it is maybe 20 miles north of us, it gets pretty cold up there. Sheesh.

 

[4WD]

Even the cooler temps there … with windows rolled up and a jacket … not bad …

It's about 50F inside my shop now … love it …
(wife comes by, says it's cold and leaves) …

 

[supton]

Apologies, I only thing of southern CA when I think of California.

Up here we don't turn heat on in our houses until temps stay in the 40's. 50 and up, no need to heat, barely need to run heat in the cars. Just how much heat would this car need in your cold temps?

 

[DoubleWasp]

Not the worst idea in the world. With the correct logistical strategy, it can work. Having one on patrol is not the same as replacement of the entire fleet.

 

[BrocLuno]

+ about 100

 

[nthach]

Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by Colt45ws
I wonder if they sent the car to Setina to have the push bumper brackets made up or if they figured it out themselves.

I also wonder what the RF emissions are like. If it causes any issues such as desense with their mobile.

I wonder if Fremont is way up in UHF, like 800MHz, maybe even higher.

Fremont is using a a shared radio system called EBRCS which is shared by law enforcement and fire/EMS in both Alameda and Contra Costa counties. It's in both the 700/800MHz bands. It's all Motorola P25 equipment, Oakland was the last standout to switch over to EBRCS after their hodgepodge Ericsson/Harris system failed and the cops complained loudly(and it was cheaper to join EBRCS than pay Harris to maintain a bad system).

https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=5317

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by nthach
Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by Colt45ws
I wonder if they sent the car to Setina to have the push bumper brackets made up or if they figured it out themselves.

I also wonder what the RF emissions are like. If it causes any issues such as desense with their mobile.

I wonder if Fremont is way up in UHF, like 800MHz, maybe even higher.

Fremont is using a a shared radio system called EBRCS which is shared by law enforcement and fire/EMS in both Alameda and Contra Costa counties. It's in both the 700/800MHz bands. It's all Motorola P25 equipment, Oakland was the last standout to switch over to EBRCS after their hodgepodge Ericsson/Harris system failed and the cops complained loudly(and it was cheaper to join EBRCS than pay Harris to maintain a bad system).

https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=5317

RFI can be hard to control but I wonder if Tesla winds up be relatively quiet up in that region.

 

[nthach]

Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by BMWTurboDzl

Think of all the power needed to continually run the climate control system when the vehicle is stationary. IMO that's going to be the issue.

I wonder... pure SWAG on my part, but I'm guessing it's less of a load on the battery to run a/c than it is to cruise at 60mph. Pure guess on my part, but it's based on a home a/c unit drawing little more than a hp (10A at 120Vac?) and a car at 60mph needing several hp to overcome air drag.

Most xEVs use a variable displacement electrically-driven compressor with its own inverter - almost always a Denso scroll type. Toyota said the move to all electric AC on the 2nd gen Prius was to allow the HVAC to run with the engine off, unlike the 1st gen cars and the Insight/1st gen Civic Hybrid(Honda used a Sanden split compressor on the 2nd gen Civic Hybrid and the 1st gen Accord Hybrid).

From my experience, I had the AC run for a good 10-20 minutes before the gas engine kicked in to recharge the battery. Keep in mind this a Prius without the massive batteries of a Tesla or a Volt/Bolt. There were still 3-4 bars left, Toyota must have done this to help extend battery life.

 

[nthach]

Originally Posted by supton

RFI can be hard to control but I wonder if Tesla winds up be relatively quiet up in that region.

xEVs in general give off a lot of RFI, but I'm thinking a Tesla isn't as complex as a Prius or Volt, the only RFI hotspots I can see is the inverter.

 

[newbe46]

Originally Posted by billt460
San Francisco and L.A.... 2 of the mildest climates in the lower 48. Run that "test" in Fargo in January, or Phoenix in July. All of this kind of stuff involving electric vehicles should be led off with the title...... "Under Ideal Conditions".


The were a couple of cold days up here in southern Ontario. Everyone I know that has an EV the mileage goes down to 1/3 of the claimed figure.

 

[y_p_w]

Originally Posted by DoubleWasp
Not the worst idea in the world. With the correct logistical strategy, it can work. Having one on patrol is not the same as replacement of the entire fleet.

They'll have access to the mother of all Tesla charging stations.

 

[4WD]

Originally Posted by AZjeff
Originally Posted by 4WD
Tesla has designed break away connections for LEO's …

Just got this, for when they're plugged in at their favorite speed trap? And an onboard LE issue cord reel?


Exactly !

 

[4WD]

Starting to see more of them around Houston … but surprisingly they don't have a roof …

 

[billt460]

They install high amperage alternators in police cars for a reason.

https://www.designnews.com/automotive-0/big-alternators-help-police/115411781835639

"The car's integrated electronic system relies on a large 125W CS125/7 alternator from Bosch Automotive (Racine, WI). The alternator has transient voltage spike protection and load response control that help the alternator prevent the Impala from stalling when the electric current demand increases. "If the computer senses more than 96 amps of electric draw while idling, it automatically boosts the idle speed to generate the extra current needed,"

 

[demarpaint]

It will be interesting to see how it holds up.

 

[y_p_w]

Originally Posted by billt460
They install high amperage alternators in police cars for a reason.

https://www.designnews.com/automotive-0/big-alternators-help-police/115411781835639

"The car's integrated electronic system relies on a large 125W CS125/7 alternator from Bosch Automotive (Racine, WI). The alternator has transient voltage spike protection and load response control that help the alternator prevent the Impala from stalling when the electric current demand increases. "If the computer senses more than 96 amps of electric draw while idling, it automatically boosts the idle speed to generate the extra current needed,"

There wasn't any note on how they modified it for all the electronics. My understanding is that everything is normally reliant on a small 12V battery to power the electronics. Not sure how it gets charged though.

I guess they could put in a supplemental battery like a car stereo system. However, a Tesla probably runs stock with more electronics than any other passenger car, so there must be a way to power up all those electronics.

 

[JeffKeryk]

The Tesla drivetrain has about 17 moving parts vs. about 200 in a conventional ICE sedan.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted by y_p_w
There wasn't any note on how they modified it for all the electronics. My understanding is that everything is normally reliant on a small 12V battery to power the electronics. Not sure how it gets charged though.

I guess they could put in a supplemental battery like a car stereo system. However, a Tesla probably runs stock with more electronics than any other passenger car, so there must be a way to power up all those electronics.

It doesn't. The point being is there is nothing they can do to recharge anything. Because all that a Tesla does is eat power. It must be replaced from somewhere else. Putting an alternator on a Tesla will not not turn the vehicle into a perpetual motion machine. Cop cars draw a tremendous amount of electrical power. Lights, sirens, radios, constantly running A/C, and computers just to name a few. And they spend a great deal of time idling with most of that running.

"The alternator has transient voltage spike protection and load response control that help the alternator prevent the Impala from stalling when the electric current demand increases."

As the article states, it takes less than a 100 Amp draw to kill an idling engine. So in order to prevent that, the electronics are designed to increase engine RPM automatically when that takes place. The same scenario in a Tesla will only amount to a drained battery faster.... Much faster. And if the answer is to turn all of it off. Or not put it in the car to begin with, then all this Rube Goldberg experiment has created is a sweaty, useless cop.

 

[Hall]

Originally Posted by JeffKeryk
...it gets pretty cold up there. Sheesh.

That's not cold at all. That's not even jacket weather (for me).